Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain...
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Transcript of Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain...
![Page 1: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/1.jpg)
Implementing an Observational Grid
Eric Saunders
Alasdair Allan
Tim NaylorUniversity of Exeter
Iain Steele
Chris MottramLiverpool John Moores University
Tim Jenness
Frossie Economou
Brad Cavanagh
Andy AdamsonJoint Astronomy Centre, Hawaii
![Page 2: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/2.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Aims
• Create an autonomous, intelligent robotic telescope network
• Allow new, previously impossible science, and scope for significant optimisations in observing / scheduling– Continuous tracking– Lightcurve analysis– Telescope time is expensive!
![Page 3: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/3.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Architecture
• An ‘observational grid’• Agent paradigm• Decentralised, flat topology (peer to peer)• Telescopes as real-time databases of the sky
![Page 4: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/4.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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The eSTAR network
© Nik Szymanek
UKIRT at JACH
User Agents
The Grid
Embedded Agent
Robonet-1.0
Embedded Agent
OGLE Observations
Alert Agent
GCN Alerts
Alert Agent
Alert Agent
WFCAM
The VO
![Page 5: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/5.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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What are ‘agents’?
• An agent is just software, not magic!• Many definitions• I shall use:
– An entity which encompasses its own flow of control
• The real ‘intelligence’ comes from relaxing the hardcoding
• Useful behaviour emerges through agent-agent interactions
![Page 6: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/6.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Implementation
• eSTAR written entirely in Perl• Node agents at telescope implemented as web
services• Communication via RTML and WSDL• SOAP for the transport protocol
• Interoperability is important to us!
![Page 7: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/7.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Encapsulating Expertise
• Lightcurve analysis:
– Stars have spots– Stars rotate– Luminosity varies
Image credit: SOHO (ESA & NASA)
![Page 8: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/8.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Finding stellar periods
![Page 9: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/9.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Automating period discovery
• Difficult – many-variable problem.• Not well understood, even by astronomers!• Ideal problem for robotic, unmanned observation• The sampling problem is a schedule optimisation
problem – ideal for agents• My work: Building the engine at the heart of the
eSTAR period discovery agent
![Page 10: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/10.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Design goals
• We call the eSTAR environment an ‘observational grid’. Why?– Uniformity – resources present the same interface– Dynamism – resources appear and disappear– Scalabilty – arbitrary resources can be added– Heterogenous – platform / language-independent– Distributed control – Many providers and users– Workflow – service chaining to solve problems
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PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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eSTAR and Robonet-1.0
• Searching for extra-Solar planets
• Real time observation follow-up using the same agent software as UKIRT
• A testbed for our adaptive dataset planning work
Photo credit: Dr Robert Smith, Liverpool John Moores University
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PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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Future challenges
• Adding further telescopes would mean the network becomes truly heterogeneous. Can we handle that?
• Interoperability between existing networks is not yet a solved problem. Standards based, using RTML over SOAP (and VOEvent for notification?)
• How do we deal with the general case, of smart agents bartering for telescope time?
![Page 13: Implementing an Observational Grid Eric Saunders Alasdair Allan Tim Naylor University of Exeter Iain Steele Chris Mottram Liverpool John Moores University.](https://reader036.fdocuments.us/reader036/viewer/2022062719/56649ec55503460f94bcfa09/html5/thumbnails/13.jpg)
PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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A Grid Market
User Agents
The Grid Grid Market
BrokerService
ProprietaryTelescope Network
BrokerService
ProprietaryTelescope Network
The VirtualObservatory
BrokerService
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PPARC e-Science Summer School, NeSC, May 2005
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The HTN WorkshopJuly 18 -21 2005
Aims• Establish the standards for
interoperability between robotic telescope networks
• Work towards the establishment of an e-market for the exchange of telescope time
• Establish the standards for interoperability with the Virtual Observatory (VO) for event notification
See htn-workshop2005.ex.ac.ukScience Goal Monitor